When comparing Pimsleur vs Rype, the Slant community recommends Pimsleur for most people. In the question“What are the best sites for learning foreign languages?”Pimsleur is ranked 14th while Rype is ranked 23rd. The most important reason people chose Pimsleur is:

Rather than simple listen-and-repeat, you also have to translate phrases and answer questions in the target language during the lessons.

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Pros

Pro

Principle of anticipation

Rather than simple listen-and-repeat, you also have to translate phrases and answer questions in the target language during the lessons.

Pro

Learn while you commute

Pimsleur uses daily 30-minute audio lessons. You can probably fit this in while you're driving to work.

Pro

Very effective for beginners

Pimsleur is based on proven memory science, it's not perfect, but it is very effective. Intermediate learners may not get as much out of it.

Pro

Graduated interval recall

Spaced repetition in and between lessons are timed for maximum recall. This also means you can't skip days between lessons, or work ahead. Each level takes one month.

Pro

Teaches pronunciation well

Uses the backchaining technique with native speakers.

Pro

Saves you massive time learning

No commuting required, teachers are available 24/7, and you can fit it into your busy schedule.

Pro

Every teacher is handpicked via live 1-on-1 interview

Eliminates the upfront work you have to do to find qualified teachers.

Pro

Daily language lessons for a fraction of the cost

Rype offers more value for 1/10th the cost of a language school.

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Cons

Con

No writing practice

Pimsleur is an audio-only course. This can be easier for beginners learning languages that don't use the Latin alphabet, but for serious language learners, it's a gap they'll have to fill using something else.

Con

Limited vocabulary

It teaches hundreds of words. A great start, but not enough to achieve the thousands required for fluency, even with all three levels. Pimsleur deliberately focuses on the most common words of the target language for maximum recall.

Con

Expensive

All the CDs for one language cost nearly a thousand dollars. The .mp3's are about half that. Your local library may carry the CDs, those that don't may be able to get them via inter-library loan (ask your librarian). You can also find them used and re-sell them for nearly as much (depending on how long you want to wait), after you finish. Be certain to get the same edition for all levels.

Con

Too slow-paced and repetitive for some learners

If you learn quickly, you may find that the 30 minute lessons covering only a small handful of vocabulary move too slowly for you.

Con

Insanely expensive

Particularly for a language like Arabic - it is far cheaper to find a tutor (or tutors) on sites like italki or verbling, then book lessons through them.

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